R. D. Fulk (ed.) 2012, ‘Eyvindr skáldaspillir Finnsson, Hákonarmál 6’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 180.
Trǫddusk tǫrgur fyr Týs of bauga
hjalta harðfótum hausar Norðmanna.
Róma varð í eyju; ruðu konungar
skírar skjaldborgir í skatna blóði.
Tǫrgur, hausar Norðmanna trǫddusk fyr {harðfótum hjalta} {Týs of bauga}. Róma varð í eyju; konungar ruðu skírar skjaldborgir í blóði skatna.
‘Shields [and] Norwegians’ skulls were trampled under the hard feet of hilts [SWORDS] of the Týr <god> of rings [MAN]. Battle arose on the island; kings reddened gleaming shield-fortresses in the blood of men.’
In Hkr, as for st. 1. In Fsk, as for st. 5.
[1-4]: (a) Of (l. 2), the reading of FskBˣ (and its sister transcripts 51ˣ and 302ˣ), is here taken as the expletive particle and adopted rather than the Hkr reading ok ‘and’ (so also Kock, Skald). Of bauga, the particle plus bauga (gen. pl.) ‘of rings’, occurs again in st. 8/4, written um bauga. The reading um/of also appears to be supported by ‘tysvin’ in FskAˣ (and 52ˣ and 301ˣ), which is almost certainly an error for ‘tysvm’ (= týs of, so Jón Helgason 1968); the same error, vin for um = of, occurs in the same mss in Þhorn Harkv 2/8. This solution seems preferable to the alternatives, although it entails assuming an understood conj. between tǫrgur and Norðmanna hausar, hence ‘shields and Norwegians’ skulls’, as well as the difficulty articulated by Sahlgren in (c) below. (b) It is possible to retain the Hkr reading ok, giving a cpd gen. phrase ‘under the swords of the warrior [Hákon] and of the Norwegians’ (so Skj B and, presumably, Möbius (1860) and Fsk 1902-3), or ‘under the hard feet [weapons (?)] of the god of hilts [swords] and shields [WARRIOR]’ (so Hkr 1991). However, the resulting syntax is strained. (c) Sahlgren (1927-8, I, 53-4) thinks it unlikely that Norwegians’ skulls (hausar Norðmanna, l. 4), should here be said to be trampled, and he would construe Norðmanna with harðfótum hjalta ‘hard feet of hilts [SWORDS]’ (so earlier Olsen 1916a, 3, though his overall interpretation of the helmingr is unconvincing). (d) Lie (1948), for similar reasons, would adopt the Fsk reading hausa, as opposed to hausar in the other mss, interpreting it as ‘head’ (gen. sg. of a rare hausi m.), in reference to Haraldr as ‘head’ of the Norwegians, parallel to týs of bauga (cf. also Herbert 1804, 122-3; Ulset 1975, 48; Seim 1984). (e) Lindquist (1929, 12-13) takes the meaning to be that shields made it difficult for the swords to get at the Norwegians’ heads.
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
Trǫddusk tǫrgur
fyr týs ok bauga
hjalta harðfótum
hausar Norðmanna.
Róma varð í eyju;
ruðu konungar
skírar skjaldborgir
í skatna blóði.
Trꜹdduz tꜹrgur | fyr tys ok bꜹga | hialta harðfotum | hꜹsar norðmanna | roma varð i eyio | ruðo konungar | scírar scialdborgir | i scatna bloði |
(RDF)
Trꜹdduz tǫrgur |
(RDF)
Trǫddusk tǫrgur
fyr týs ok bauga
hjalta harðfótum
ok hausar Norðmanna.
Róma varð í eyju;
ruðu firar margir
skírar skjaldborgir
í skatna blóði.
Trꜹddoz | torgvr fyri tys ok bꜹga | híallta harþfotvm ok hꜹsar norð manna. | roma varþ i eyio rvðo firar margir skírar skíalldborgir | i skatna bloði·
(RDF)
Trꜹddoz tꜹrgvr.
(RDF)
Trꜹdduz to᷎r | gvr.
(RDF)
Trꜹdduz to᷎rgr |
(RDF)
trǫðuðu tǫrgur
við týss of valdi
hjalta harðfótum
hausa Norðmanna.
Róma varð í eyju;
ruðu konungar
skíra skjaldborgir
í skatna blóði.
Trauðaðu torgor | við tyss of vallde | hiallta harð fotum | hausa norðmanna | roma vard i ꝍyíu | ruðu. konungar | skira skialldborger | i skatna bloðe |
(RDF)
Trauðaðu torgor | við tys of vallde | hialta harðfotum | hausa norðmanna | roma varð i o᷎yíu | ruðu konongar | skira skialldborger | i skatna bloðe. |
(RDF)
Trauðaðu torgor | við tyss of vallde | hialta harðfotum | hausa norðmanna | roma varð i o᷎yíu | ruðu konongar | skira skialdborger | i skatna bloðe. |
(VEÞ)
trǫðuðu tǫrgur
†við tysvin valde†
hjalta harðfótum
hausa Norðmanna.
Róma varð í eyju;
ruðu konungar
skírar skjaldborgir
í skatna blóði.
Travðoðu taurgor | við tysvin valde | hiallta harðfotom | hausa norðmanna | ʀoma varð i ꝍyiu | ruðu konungar | skirar skialldborger | i scatna bloðe |
(RDF)
Trꜹðoþu tꜹrgor | við tysvin valde | hialta harðfotom | housa norðmanna | roma varþ i ꝍyio | ruðu konongar | scirar scialdborgir | i scatna bloðe |
(VEÞ)
Traudoðo taurgor , við ty | svin valde hiallta harð fotom hausa norð | manna . Roma varð i ꝍyiu , ruðu konongar , skirar | skialldborghir i scatnabloðe.
(VEÞ)
Trǫddusk tǫrgur
fyr týs ok bauga
hjalta harðfótum
hausar Norðmanna.
Róma varð í eyju;
ruðu konungar
skírar skjaldborgir
í skatna blóði.
Traudduz tǫ⸜au⸝rgur | fyr tyss oc bauga | hialta harðfotum | hausar norðmanna. | roma varð i eyio | ruðo konongar | scírar scialdborgir | i scatna blóðe. |
(RDF)
Skj: Eyvindr Finnsson skáldaspillir, 1. Hákonarmál 6: AI, 65, BI, 58, Skald I, 35-6, NN §§1053, 2423; Hkr 1893-1901, I, 214, 219, IV, 56, ÍF 26, 188, 193, Hkr 1991, I, 121, 126 (HákGóð chs 30, 32), F 1871, 82; Fsk 1902-3, 42 (ch. 12), ÍF 29, 89 (ch. 13); Möbius 1860, 233, Jón Helgason 1968, 26, Krause 1990, 70-5.
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